Episode 34: Podcasting Extravaganza Part III

This is my special two year Podiversary Extravaganza, part 3 of 3. To celebrate this milestone, I invited former guests back on the show to interview me about which episodes/movies/books from Star Trek were most meaningful to me! Because of the fun and wide-ranging discussions, I will be bringing you these interviews over three episodes.

If you didn’t listen to the first two, I would recommend going there first. Episode 32 is part 1 and is here. Episode 33 is part 2 and is here.

For part 3, I talk with Barry DeFord about The Omega Directive. Then Hayley Stoddart and I do a deep dive into Lifesigns. For a discussion of the TOS novel How Much for Just the Planet? Justin Oser joins me. And finally I convince Crystal Pisano to watch Enterprise for the first time to chat about Dear Doctor.

Topics

• Segment One – Omega Directive – Barry DeFord
  • The perfect Star Trek Burrito
  • Seven of Nine and spirituality
  • Is this an example of “religion” or “religiosity” in Star Trek?
  • The spiritual vs the transcendent
  • The difference between the Federation vs the people of the Federation
  • Gnosticism and the “Secret Knowledge”
  • The chain of command and its necessities
  • The loneliness of command
  • The essential premise of Star Trek Voyager and the goals and life plans of the crew
  • Seven as Saul of Tarsus
• Message from Dr Erin MacDonald
• Segment Two – Lifesigns – Hayley Stoddart
  • A little bit of Trek Profiles history and retrospective
  • Torres and Worf as contrasts in helping others
  • Glycogen Storage Disease – Type 1A
    • Please see the dedicated page for GSD that I’ve set up on the web site here. It has links, videos, and other information about the condition.
    • If you’d like to donate, please use this link.
  • The allure of normal life
  • John’s live tweeting of Star Trek
  • Orphan diseases
  • The weirdness of 1957 Chevy car on Mars
  • The story about the sexual relationship that Robert Picardo didn’t know about in the story is recounted on Memory Alpha. You can also read about how different songs were played in the parking scene depending on when and where you watched the episode.
  • Hayley turns the tables on John and asks questions about the podcast generally
    • What’s coming up for Trek Profiles
    • John’s favorite and least favorite things about podcasting
    • The anti-climactic feeling of publishing a podcast
    • How the show has changed John’s opinions on any Star Trek
• Segment Three – How Much for Just the Planet? – Justin Oser
  • The strangest novel in the Trek Universe
  • The use of songs in the novel
  • The novel Catch-22
  • The point of view of the upcoming “Lower Decks” show
  • Speculation on the origin of the novel
  • More on the author, John M Ford
    • Start here to get an overview of why his books are hard to find
    • John Ford’s Klingon Wedding Ceremony that he wrote
    • Some of John Ford’s books are being republished! Check them out here.
  • John’s deep, dark, Star Trek wish
  • John’s picks for the two funniest parts of the novel
  • Connection between Klin Zha in The Final Reflection vs the Klingon Captain in this novel
• Message from John Champion
• Segment Four – Dear Doctor – Crystal Pisano
  • Adhering to the premise of the show
  • The joy of Star Trek Enterprise
  • Game of Thrones novels
  • John’s compassion for Dr Phlox’s situation
  • T’Pol’s smirking during the dental exam scene
  • The right answer is ambiguous
  • The “prime directive” speech
  • The challenge of doing what they portray on the show
  • Influences in Enterprise from 9/11
• From the Bonus Material
  • Carnival Row

Episodes Discussed

• Segment One – Omega Directive – Barry DeFord
  • Star Trek: First Contact (Film)
• Segment Two – Lifesigns – Hayley Stoddart
  • Faces VOY S1E14
  • The Enemy TNG S3E7
  • The Cloud Minders TOS S3E19
• Segment Three – How Much for Just the Planet? – Justin Oser
  • The Wounded Sky (Novel)
  • The Entropy Effect (Novel)
  • Yesterday’s Son (Novel)
  • The Final Reflection (Novel)
• Segment Four – Dear Doctor – Crystal Pisano
  • Carbon Creek ENT S2E2

Connect

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Background photo of “The Seven Magic Mountains” art installation outside of Las Vegas by Brandi Ibrao on Unsplash